Select two of the movies that we have studied and compare and contrast Essay

Select two of the movies that we have studied and compare and contrast how they represent national identity and the national pas - Essay Example The success of the movies in bringing out matters of identity and national past are immense enough to be contrasted and compared in a meaningful and sustainable debate, as shall be seen forthwith. It is important to note that in Good Bye, Lenin! nationalism is still regarded as being propounded by the exploits of a state. This can be seen in the instance where Alex Kerner remembers as a child, how he as the first German and in the company of his compatriots, proudly entered space. The fact that this forms part of the movie’s prologue and is presented as a form of flashback, is significant. The significance of the scene is important since it portrays this national occasion as important to the state which is Germany. This caption seems to insinuate that national exploits make citizens more proud (of their country) and inspire the ‘we-feeling’ among citizens. The case immediately above converges ways with Bergman’s The Seventh Seal. This is because, the theme of loyalty to one’s state is extolled, though nationalism is not thoroughly mentioned in Bergman’s work. The extolling of nationalism in The Seventh Seal is seen in Knight Antonius Block obediently carry out the Crusades. The Crusades were sanctioned by the state under the tutelage of the monarch. Because of his loyalty to his state, Block engages in the Crusades, even if such engagements may portend risking life. The difference between the two movies is underpinned by the disparity of time in which they are set. While Good Bye, Lenin! has a setting that dates back to the Cold War (probably 1950s to 1990), The Seventh Seal has a setting that can date between 1095 and 1291 AD. In both cases, the concept of patriotism to one’s country was still regarded as paramount (Vermilye, 2006, 29). In the movie Good Bye, Lenin! the family is portrayed as having an immense influence on the personality and identity of an individual. For instance, after Alex’s father fle es to West Berlin, Alex has no recourse to living with his mother Christiane, his sister Ariane and Paula, Alex’s niece who is also Ariane’s daughter. In the absence of Alex’s father, his mother Christiane becomes an ardent follower of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and a radical idealist (Fisher and Prager, 2010, 17). It is most probable that the author of Good Bye, Lenin! writes the movie with a mind of conservative. This is seen in the manner in which he devotes his time to discuss the effect of national policies on the family. By highlighting the plight of Christiane, Alex and Ariane after the head of the family flees to West Berlin, the audience is made aware of the import of unfriendly policies and absentee fatherhood. It helps that the author uses Alex as a mouthpiece and the protagonist so that in him, the audience is made aware of the far reaching damages that accost an unstable family. Again, the author unites the family in the end, and thereby i mplying the triumph over the family, over state-sanctioned inhuman policies. It therefore suffices to say that the author tends towards familism rather than individualism, for he had the prerogatives to draw out a plotline that centres on an individual (in lieu of a family), yet he does not. It is also clear that in the period between 1945 (when Cold War started) and 1990 (when Cold War ended) had stronger family values, compared to the moment. Therefore, it is logical that Good Bye, Lenin! contains strong family values. As opposed to the case above where the author as an